(a) Field
The subject matter disclosed generally relates to methods for producing weather forecasts. More specifically, the subject matter relates to software applications for producing weather forecasts.
(b) Related Prior Art
Conventional weather forecasting systems provide weather predictions twelve hours to a few days from the present time. If one needs a short-term forecast or a forecast with a fine time scale, the best information available is usually an hourly forecast for the day.
Conventional weather forecasts are average forecasts for the area for which they are generated. Thus, a forecast may be inaccurate for a precise location within this area, and even the present weather displayed for an area may differ from the actual weather for a precise location within this area.
Moreover, conventional weather forecasts are displayed on a time scale that is too coarse to allow a user to know when a weather event takes place in a precise location and time. Even for hourly conventional weather forecasts, it is impossible for the user to know if the forecasted weather event lasts one hour or one minute and, for the latter, at what time it takes place exactly within the hour.
Furthermore, weather forecasts may be inaccurate and there is no way to know it since there is no interaction with the users. Collaboration with the users is thus needed.
Therefore, there is a need in the market for the generation of short-term weather forecasts, and a convenient and collaborative way to display these weather forecasts is also needed.